A Feminist's Argument On How Sex Work Can Benefit Women

Sex work has long been criticized and stigmatized in our society. While many members of society view sex work as immoral and degrading to women, I argue that sex work is essentially just work, and that it is not necessarily harmful to women. Under circumstances in which sex work is accepted and regulated in society, in which the sex worker is protected and granted the same rights as any other laborer, sex work has the possibility to be beneficial to women.

Sex work can be very profitable for women, and many women may enjoy work that allows them to creatively express their sexuality. Sex work can allow human beings a way to safely explore their sexual desires in ways they cannot through the current social norm of heterosexual, monogamous relationships. The sex work industry and its workers need not be chastised by a society that clings to puritan ideals of what is “moral”. I argue prostitution should be legal.

Every human being has the right to make informed decisions about his or her own body, and laws that govern sex work are laws that govern an individual’s right to make decisions about her own body. Sex work is illegal because it is largely viewed as immoral and degrading, but morality is objective and society’s opinion on what is “right” and “wrong” is constantly shifting. Morality provides no sound basis for law, as people governed by laws can not possibly all share the same moral beliefs.

My argument is that prostitution should be made legal, sex workers offered the same rights and respect as workers in any other field, and that by doing this sex work can become something that benefits women and humanity in general.

In Carole Pateman’s essay, “What is Wrong With Prostitution?”, she argues that prostitution is an embodiment of patriarchy (2006). She relates to historical societies in which men had ownership over their wives, and says that while men no longer have complete ownership of women in our society, prostitution provides a way for men to exercise ownership over women’s bodies temporarily.

I disagree with this conclusion on prostitution. Men do not own a prostitute when they are paying her for sex any more than a business man owns his factory workers. If prostitutes are given the right to choose their clients and to stop sex at any point in which they feel unsafe or uncomfortable, prostitution is not a question of temporary ownership.

Another point Pateman makes in her essay distinguishes prostitution from other forms of work based on the product being paid for. Pateman argues that in other forms of labor work, the employer is paying for the product of the labor, and not the labor itself. In prostitution, the physical labor itself is the commodity (Pateman, 2006).

This argument does not hold up. Workers in any entertainment field, such as stage actors, dancers, or comedians, are paid for their actual labor, not any product which is produced by their labor. In this way, one can view the prostitute as an entertainer; the root of each type of work is essentially the same: to provide a pleasurable experience for a customer.

Finally, Pateman argues that because sexuality is so intertwined with ones personality and identity, to sell sex is to sell oneself (2006). Again, this argument is unconvincing. It is true that prostitutes are paid for exerting one aspect of their personality (their sexuality). However, prostitution is not unique in this sense.

Many workers earn a living by exerting a strong aspect of their personality. Managers are paid for their leadership abilities, teachers for their patience, and waiters for their extroversion. Why, then, is it wrong for a prostitute to profit from her sexuality?

Once we recognize that sex work is not inherently exploitative of women, the question becomes: under what conditions can sex work actually benefit women? Before sex work can benefit women, it must first cease to endanger women. I argue that the most essential condition to reduce harm to sex workers is to legalize and legitimize sex work, and provide sex workers with the same rights as other workers. In Priscilla Alexander’s article “Feminism, Sex Workers, and Human Rights”, she provides an outline of rights that would protect sex workers (1997). She calls first for a distinction between forced and voluntary prostitution. It needs to be recognized that not all sex workers are forced into sex work; that an individual can consciously decide to engage in sex work.

In addition to this, forced prostitution and sex trafficking need to be eliminated. Next, Alexander asserts that prostitution needs to be regulated by the same occupational safety and health regulations offered to workers in other labor industries. Sex workers need protection from exploitation by third-party managers.

They ask for limits on the proportion of their income that managers can take and for benefits like health insurance and sick days. Sex workers ask for “clean, safe places to work with the absolute right to refuse to engage in unsafe sex practices” (Alexander, 2007, p. 93).

They need access to training on sexually transmitted diseases, dealing with dangerous clients, and self-defense in case of an attack. Prostitutes should have the right to travel between states and countries just like any other worker. Sex workers need protection by law enforcement officers, to enforce laws against physical and sexual assault, kidnapping, extortion and fraud.

Sex workers should have the right to unionize, and should be able to choose whether they work on their own, in groups, or with managers. As presented in the filmLive Nude Girls Unite!, sex workers also desire protection against discrimination based on their race (Query, 2000).

Even in legal forms of sex work, like exotic dancing, women of color are discriminated against. Workers of color are often given limited hours and do not have access to the most prestigious positions based on their perceived lack of marketability. Anti-discrimination laws should be enforced in the sex industry as they are in any other industry. To summarize, sex work should be legalized, and sex workers offered all the protections offered to workers in other industries. When sex work is recognized and treated as legitimate work, sex work can begin to benefit women.Continued on Next Page »

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